In light of the start of trial hearings beginning on 27 June 2011 of Case 002 against the surviving Khmer Rouge senior leaders Nuon Chea, Khieu Samphan, Ieng Sary and Ieng Thirith, KI Media is posting installations of the public document of the Closing Order of Case 002. The Closing Order of the Co-Investigating Judges forms the basic document from which all the parties (Co-Prosecutors, Co-Lead Lawyers for all civil parties, Defense Lawyers) will be making their arguments before the Trial Chamber judges (one Cambodian President, 2 Cambodian Judges, 2 UN judges). Up until now, the hearings involving these four surviving senior Khmer Rouge leaders have been in the Pre-Trial Chamber over issues of pre-trial detention and jurisdictional issues. Beginning in June 2011, the Trial Chamber will hear the substantive arguments over the criminal charges (e.g. genocide, crimes against humanity, penal code of 1956). Available in Khmer and French. Contact the ECCC for a free copy.

CLOSING ORDER
of Co-Investigating Judges You Bunleng and Marcel Lemonde, 15 September 2010

Srae Ambel WorksiteLiving and Working Conditions
376. Official Party sources state that approximately 5000 women and 500 former male combatants (mainly technicians) were working at Srae Ambel; this figure is confirmed by witnesses.1619 In Kampong Kandal, there were around 3000 female workers,1620 with about 1000 female workers at Trauy Koh.1621 Twelve witnesses were former female workers.1622 The vast majority of the workers were base people coming from Kampot Province1623 and Takeo Province.1624 Some workers also came from the provinces of Kampong Speue, Kampong Chhnang, Svay Rieng, Kampong Thom and Koh Kong.1625 It appears that some CPK cadres originally from the East Zone were sent to work at Srae Ambel when Soa Phim was accused of treason and arrested; these East Zone cadres had been working in hospitals in Phnom Penh up until this point.1626 Furthermore, witnesses explain that there were regular transfers of workers between Srae Ambel and Office K-2 of the Ministry of Social Affairs and other related hospitals of this Ministry, especially the 6 January Hospital and Po-1 Hospital, as well as laboratories, from late 1977 to late 1978.1621
377. Workers lived together in common houses that were guarded at night by unarmed guards.1628 During the dry season workers undertook tasks such as erecting dykes in the salt fields, shovelling dirt, compressing the ground, farrowing the earth by hand instead of by ox in the salt water and carrying bags of salt into the warehouses or into vehicles.1629 During the rainy season they had to make, prepare and improve tools for the following salt production and were sent to work in the rice fields in the cooperatives throughout Kampot Sector.1630 Work started at 4 am or 6 am.1631 Sometimes workers had to continue working at night if they had not completed their work or to avoid the salt melting.1632 Workers had to work hard without complaint, so as not to be accused of being lazy.1633 For this reason, they worked even when they became very sick.1634
378. Accusations of laziness or of being a traitor, illness and lack of food all resulted in some workers committing suicide.1635 Workers were not allowed to leave without permission. They worked and lived under the strict control of the CPK cadres.1636 Trey Koh salt field was surrounded by the sea, preventing people from escaping.1637 Regular criticism/self-criticism meetings were also convened1638 and biographies of workers were taken.1639
379. Guards and technicians received larger food rations than regular workers.1640 Witnesses state that if someone was late or sick, his or her ration would be cut down or deprived as punishment.1641 One of them states that some workers caught stealing food were deprived of food for two days.1642 Workers were taken for bathing one or twice a week and, as a result, many suffered from poor hygiene.1643 They were treated using locally produced medicines, which were ineffective. Severely ill or injured workers were sent for medical treatment at Chhum Kreal Pagoda located in Chhum Kreal Subdistrict next to Kampong Kandal, whilst less sick workers were treated at the worksite itself.1644 Several witnesses saw many workers die of exhaustion or illness at either the Chhum Kreal Pagoda or at the worksite.1645 During this time, Phnom Penh radio broadcasts stated that the CPK paid attention to the living conditions and health of the salt field workers.1646

Cambodian citizen Koul Panha has been awarded the prestigious Ramon Magsaysay Award, often referred to as Asia’s Nobel peace prize, for his work with the Committee for Free and Fair Elections.

He is one of six people to receive this year’s award, which will be presented to them at a ceremony in Manila on August 31.

He is being recognised for “his determined and courageous leadership of the sustained campaign to build an enlightened, organised and vigilant citizenry who will ensure fair and free elections – as well as demand accountable governance by their elected officials – in Cambodia’s nascent democracy”, the Ramon Magsaysay Award Foundation said.

In an interview with The Post, Koul Panha said he was “surprised” and “excited” to receive the award.

Koul Panha is executive director of Comfrel, which seeks to increase electoral transparency and voter participation.
Since 1997 it has enlisted more than 50,000 election volunteers and held election-related workshops for about 150,000 voters, he said.

Koul Panha said the award would encourage his organisation to work harder, especially in preparation for the commune elections next year and national elections in 2013.

“We will deploy our volunteers to inform people about the importance of elections and their right to vote, as well as advocating electoral fairness, integrity and an even playing field for all [political] parties,” he said.

“The history of Cambodia is full of conflict. People want, finally, to enjoy democracy and fair elections.”

The award is named after a president of the Philippines who died in a plane crash in 1957. The foundation that oversees the award was established by the Rockefeller Brothers Fund to “honour his memory and perpetuate his example of integrity in public service and pragmatic idealism within a democratic society”.

Koul Panha will receive a certificate, a cash prize and a medallion emblazoned with the image of Ramon Magsaysay. A total of 290 people in 22 Asian countries have been given the award.

30 July 2011
By Arnaud Dubus
Liberation (France)
Translated from French by Luc Sâr

“Cambodia is slowly sinking into a predatory authoritarian regime like those established by Zine Abidine Ben Ali of Tunisia and Muammar Qaddafi of Libya.”

In the early 90s, there was an illusion that the massive operation undertaken by the United Nations to rehabilitate Cambodia after decades of war had “rooted” democracy there. A new constitution was drafted. The election, judged reasonably free and fair, took place in 1993 with a turnout of almost 90%. A civil society sprouted on the wasteland of a rejuvenated country. Cambodia was an exception in the region, leaping from an autocratic post-Khmer Rouge regime to a liberal government, a kind of “Cambodian miracle” that defies the lessons of history.

Since then, this dream has eroded steadily, especially since the Prime Minister, Hun Sen, has marginalized the political opposition following the 2008 election. The majority of local human rights representatives no longer wanted to be cited personally. The risk of being thrown in jail for criticizing the mighty Hun Sen and Bun Rany, his wife who bears the title “Honorable Wise Doctor,” is just too much to bear. Christophe Peschoux, the director of the Phnom Penh office of the UN Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights (UN OHCHR), had to leave the country in May after Hun Sen asked all government agencies to stop cooperating with him.

Nothing illustrates better the deterioration of fundamental freedoms than the issue of farmers who face forced eviction from their lands to make way for rubber plantation or sugar cane companies whose owners are closely linked to the government. “When the victims complain against the powerful people, judges do not pay attention them. But when private companies complain about the victims, the judges and prosecutors rush in [to meet the companies’ demands],” a Cambodian activist said.

The mixing of political and business interests is quite dizzy at times: for example, a senator who is a close friend of the Prime Minister grabs for himself a plot of land with the support of the military, next, he benefits from the passing of a law by the National Assembly that provides financial guarantee to the project on the plot of land. Cambodia is slowly sinking into a predatory authoritarian regime like those established by Zine Abidine Ben Ali of Tunisia and Muammar Qaddafi of Libya.

Yu Muroga is a Japanese delivery man. He was on his delivery trip when the 11 March 2011 earthquake took place. Like most people in his area, he did not feel threatened by the Tsunami as he lives rather far away from the shore. Therefore, he was continuing to drive for his work. Not only did the High Def camera attached to his dashboard record the shaking, it also recorded the subsequent events where several drivers were caught in the Tsunami flooding. The camera was recently retrieved by the Japanese police near Yu Muroga’s body in the car.